Agnès Mellon: soprano
Hélène Schmitt: violin
Julien Léonard: viola da gamba
Brice Sailly: organ

Agnès Mellon:  artistic direction

Programme:

Georg Friedrich Handel (1685 – 1759):
Deutsche Arien:
Meine Seele hört im sehen
(HWV 207)

Carl Friedrich Abel (1723 - 1787):
Pieces for solo viol:
Suite pour basse de viole seule en ré mineur:
Prélude / Allegro / Moderato
(MS Drexel 5871)

Johann Sebastian Bach (1685 – 1750):
Gott, wie dein Name, so ist auch dein Ruhm (cantata):
Jesus soll mein erstes Wort
(BWV 171)

Johann Sebastian Bach (1685 - 1750):
Clavier Übung III:
Duetti I in e minor
(BWV 802)

Johann Sebastian Bach (1685 - 1750):
Clavier Übung III:
Fugetta super Diess sind die heiligen zehen geboth
(BWV 679)

Georg Friedrich Handel (1685 - 1759):
Deutsche Arien:
Singe, Seele, Gott zum Preise (ca. 1724-26)
London,
(HWV 206)

Johann Sebastian Bach (1685 - 1750):
Schwingt freudig euch empor (cantata):
Auch mit gedämpften, schwachen Stimmen
(BWV 36)

Johann Sebastian Bach (1685 - 1750):
Sei Solo a Violino senza Basso accompagnato:
Sonata no 1:
Adagio / Fuga: Allegro / Siciliana / Presto
(BWV 1001)

Georg Philip Telemann (1681 - 1767):
Am Feste Johannes des Täufers (cantata):
Die Kinder des Höchsten
(TWV 1:394)

 About the Programme:

Germany In Search Of Its Own Identity

Although they produced their fair share of great musicians throughout the entire 17th century, the German-speaking countries had a belated awareness of their own musical genius. It is more than a little ironic that this national sentiment developed not in opposition to foreign influence, but rather out of an integration of the two musical styles that were popular in Europe at the time: Italian and French. Thus, Joachim Quantz wrote that “when one is capable of making a judicious choice from among the musical tastes of other nations, the result is a sort of intermediary style that we could, in all modesty, call the German style…not only because the Germans were the first to discover this form of expression, but because we have witnessed its success for many years, and it appears to displease neither the Italians nor the French.”
Then, as the prestige of the models gradually waned, Wilhelm Hertel declared in 1758, “In the realm of music, we have reached the point where we no longer have to depend on foreigners; we are even more skilled at using the beauties of both Italian and French music to best advantage, and with greater depth of feeling.” The Germans’ awareness of their own artistic worth was accompanied by a growing patriotism resulting from the rise of the bourgeoisie. Within this vast social movement, the status of musicians shifted from that of artisans indentured to courts and cities to one of true artists capable of expressing the nation’s soul.

History has determined, with variations of fortune over time, that the three great German composers of the first half of the 18th century were Johann Sebastian Bach, Georg Friedrich Händel and Georg Philipp Telemann. Already conscious of their respective forms of genius in 1728, the poet and humanist Christoph Gottsched stated, “The celebrated Telemann is one of the three great masters of music who bring honour to our country. Händel is admired by all the connoisseurs of London, while Herr Kapellmeister Bach is at the head of his peers in Saxony. All three are distributing their works not only throughout Germany, but also in Italy and France, where they enjoy universal appeal.”

Bach was the least known of the three during his lifetime. In spite of his immense genius, the positions he held were relatively modest. While in the service of Prince Leopold von Anhalt-Köthen from 1717 to 1722, he composed the lion’s share of his instrumental music for his patron’s excellent court musicians: the Brandenburg Concertos, the sonatas for violin and harpsichord, the sonatas and partitas for solo violin, the suites for unaccompanied cello, and many other masterpieces. (Bach wrote his cello suites for the cello and viola da gamba player Christian Ferdinand Abel. During the 1780s, his son Carl Friedrich, established in London, would be the last great bass viol player before the instrument was definitively eclipsed by the cello.)

When he obtained the post of cantor of St. Thomas Church in Leipzig in 1723, Bach devoted himself to the composition of sacred cantatas (Bach had been a Lutheran in the Calvinist court of Köthen). In this form, choruses and chorales play an important role, accompanied by an instrumental ensemble of sometimes considerable proportions. The arias, however, always in da capo form, are often in the spirit of chamber music, demanding virtuosity and exceptional technique on the part of the performers.

During this period, Händel was pursuing a career of a completely different nature. Recognized as the greatest musician living in England at the time, Händel promoted Italian opera for over three decades, composing and directing his own company with an iron hand. It was only towards the end of his life that he composed his great English oratorios. He wrote very little music for his mother tongue. The nine Deutsche Arien resulted from a visit to his mother in Halle in 1729 on his return from a voyage to Italy to recruit new singers for his opera company. When he discovered the devout naturalist poetry of pastor B.H. Brockes, he decided, on his return to London, to set some of his verses to music. This he did, in the form of conversations between voice and solo instrument that are suffused with a rare intimacy and warmth.

Their friend Telemann, however, was without doubt the most renowned of the three composers during his lifetime—and the most prolific. The volume of his creative output was in fact greater than those of Bach and Händel combined! (Although it must be mentioned that Telemann lived to the age of 86...) The aria Die Kinder des Höchsten sind rufende Stimmen is an excerpt from a cantata for St. John the Baptist that appeared in Hamburg in 1726 as part of an important collection first published in the form of a periodical entitled Der Harmonische Gottes-Dienst. Composed for small ensemble and voice, as their Italian models often were, the cantatas in this collection were suitable for both modest churches and domestic devotions.

In the text for a cantata written in 1729, the poet Marianne von Ziegler provides evidence of the already recognized importance of these three great masters, each so different from the others: “Who could have written this enchanting music? Was it Telemann, Bach or Händel?”

© François Filiatrault, 2008
(translation: Cynthia Gates)
 

 Bio:

The Barcarole ensemble was founded in 1997 by Agnès Mellon, in response to the desire to create an ensemble devoted to a Baroque repertoire for voices and several instruments. A lyrical artist with great repertoire and stage experience, Agnès Mellon is passionate about the creation of small-piece projects. The ensemble performs principally in France, but likewise elsewhere in Europe, and soon in Japan. Barcarole’s first recording, “Les déesses outrages” appeared in 2005 under the Alpha label. Presently, “Mater beata, Mater dolorosa”, a 2006 concert, is being broadcast on the waves of the Mezzo channel. This same program will be the subject of Barcarole’s next disc with Alpha.